Less EDM more bikes

Circumnavigating Ibiza on a MTB

The first thoughts about Ibiza (the other smaller sister of the Balearic island of Mallorca) is either that one Cafe del Mar sampler that everybody owns or pictures of yachts, rich people and neverending parties. When setting out to Ibiza on the ferry with a bike packed for off road touring I asked myself if there was more to the place than that too - and there is.

After arriving in the port of Eivissa (aka the city of Ibiza) in almost 30 degree C heat I set out for the first of two days around the island using dirt roads, single track and the occasional tarmac. Day one was dedicated to the south part of the island with Sant Antoni (which is the place where the real Cafe del Mar exists) being the overnight stop. On the second day I went for a long loop along the north coast back to Eivissa and the boat home.

The dirt roads of the island where a revelation as in almost every third level road is well kept gravel (even a 28mm tire on a road bike would work here). The difficulty is less the surface condition of monster climbs but that fact that the roads and tracks are rarely flat and that every short rise seems to have 15% pitch.

The town of Eivissa is interesting for its architecture and rich history but Sant Antoni is what one expects of Ibiza with many discos and bars and little else. I did stay on the local campground and even that was used by party tourists who are too cheap for a hotel. I would recommend camping wild if you do not have an issue with that.

Ibiza did show its other face especially in the north with steep cliffs dropping down the ocean and a quiet back country feel to it. Would I recommend Ibiza on a bike? Yes - if you have seen Mallorca and Menorca already.

Adventurer: Bengt